School choice cannot survive on altruism alone

We understand Pequannock officials' exasperation that the additional aid they expected when they participated in the state's School Choice Program was being offset with a reduction elsewhere, for ostensibly a net gain of zero.

The board signed onto School Choice in the summer of 2012 to allow students from other districts to attend Pequannock schools free of charge. Back then, Pequannock school district officials saw the program as a win-win situation to maintain their student body as the township's own student enrollment figures declined. The state promised Pequannock that it would give the district about $13,000 per student it accepted into the program, and the district brought in about a dozen outside students. The win for the students was that a few were afforded the opportunity of attending the school of their choice. In the bigger picture, more choice is good for everyone.

"The bottom line was the same, though we were expecting additional [aid] because of the choice program," Superintendent of Schools Dr. Victor Hayek said on Feb. 10, later adding, "We expected the DOE (state Department of Education) to support this program wholeheartedly, and they haven't."

While DOE officials said they tried to make it clear that participation would result in a loss of state aid (and we believe them), that only means the program is ill-conceived.

If the purpose is to provide parents more choices in schools for their children to attend, and the assumption must be that parents are looking for better educational opportunities, then districts with the wherewithal to accept these pupils should, if not rewarded, be at least provided with incentives to accept these students.

The public school system, after all, operates on an economy of scale. An extra 11 students would add another $143,000 to the school's budget, which could make the difference between keeping a staff member and a program or eliminating them because of budget constraints. If the DOE truly wants to open up educational opportunities in districts like Pequannock, it must put up some incentive, or risk that districts will shut out these students.